Perhaps it is a little too late to ask if Italian football has entered the state of eternal deterioration, the point of no return. When you examine the teams remaining in this season’s Champions League, the answer becomes apparent.
Of the 16 teams remaining that made it to the knockout stages, only one is Italian. The once mighty AC Milan scraped through in feeble fashion, and many people will be surprised if dark horses Atletico do not teach the Italians a painful lesson. A now distant memory, the 2002-2003 season saw AC Milan, Inter and Juventus all reach the Champions League semi-finals. At Old Trafford, AC Milan went on to lift the Holy Grail of European football, beating Juventus in a penalty shoot-out. For many purists, it was arguably the worst Champions League finale of the decade.
What exactly has gone so wrong? Adriano Galliani, a close friend and political associate of the notorious Silvio Berlusconi, attempted to answer this query in a recent interview. When questioned, the C.E.O. of AC Milan replied, “Today’s Serie A table coincides with club turnover, we’re playing in a new championship now; called the Money League. The main reason for our crisis is basic economics, our biggest problem is that clubs like us share a stadium and don’t have one of their own.” A very valid point, not only financially abortive, this agreement between the clubs is not exactly welcomed by some of the most passionate fans in Europe. Honestly, could you imagine Manchester City and Red Devil fans sharing a stadium?
In this captivating interview, Galliani alluded to the fact that when key sponsors learn that the arena “changes colour” (changes club) every week, they pull out of major sponsorship deals. Not really surprising, as, on a regular basis, it would simply cost too much money to assemble and then dismantle billboards associated with the rival clubs. Galliani also spoke dejectedly about world-class players following the money trail, an avenue that now leads directly to England, Spain, Germany and France, sometimes even the MLS. Oh, how times have changed for Italian football. Almost a quarter of a century ago, Real Madrid tried to buy one of Milan’s greatest ever strikers, Marco Van Basten, however, back then, Milan’s profits considerably overshadowed that of Real. Predictably, AC could and did reject the bid, opting instead to retain the services of the Dutch architect.
In modern times, if an offer like that came the way of AC, Inter, Napoli, Juve, Roma, or any other Italian club, the response would surely be different. Galliani confesses: “We would simply lose the player.” Just think about Coutinho, the ex-Inter midfielder, who made the move to Liverpool, Brendan Rodgers managed to sign the Brazilian whizkid for a measly £8.5m. Practically buttons in today’s inflated market, but Inter just couldn’t afford to turn down the offer. The Brazilian playmaker is now a pivotal player for Liverpool, proving to be one of the most exciting talents in European football. When you consider the fact that Spurs paid an initial fee of £25.8 million, plus up to £4.2 million in bonus payments for Erik Lamela, a player who has largely flattered to deceive, this was a shrewd acquisition for the Anfield faithful.
Capital clout may be part of the explanation, however, it does not tell the whole story. Italian football has fallen behind, both financially and entertainment wise. As much as on the field, football today lives by movement off the field. In England, Spain & Germany, the pace of the game is much faster, more insistent and undeviating. In Italy, the game is too slow, almost lethargic, perhaps that is why Super Mario Balotelli chose to move back to the San Siro, this time to play for AC. Balotelli’s latest club were a disaster in the group stages, tremendously fortunate to have reached the last 16, while the non existence of Juventus, Inter & Napoli in the knockout stages, is a simple reflection of Italian football. The economic divide between Serie A and the rest of Europe’s most followed leagues cannot explain all of Italian footballs shortcomings. Recent European club competition malfunction shows that Serie A must rapidly reform its footballing parameters. Monetary deficiencies and not owning your own stadia cannot account for everything, these excuses no longer carry the weight and persuasion they once did. When Cristiano Ronaldo was playing for Manchester United, he earned £5million less per year than Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who was then playing at Inter. At that time, United were far more successful than Inter, yet, strangely, the entire Inter wage bill back then was twice that of Manchester United.
Back in 2006, to some extent, Italy’s World Cup win in Germany helped buy them some time, camouflaging many of the fundamental problems crippling Serie A. The governing body of Italian football epitomizes everything that is putrid about Serie A. Still seemingly distracted by that win in Germany, their attempts to enact effective change has been almost non-existent.
Improving infrastructure, leading to improved profits, would be a great start, as indeed would a detour away from this defensive style of football that they cling too so desperately. Twenty five years ago, with players such as Ruud Gullit and Frank Rijkaard, Arrigo Sacchi may have thought that he had changed the mindset of Italian football. In reality, the achievements of one magnificent side would never be powerful enough to promote a revolution of practices.
Since the mid to late 90’s, Italian football has been rocked to the core by numerous scandals, from match fixing and drug exploitation, to fiscal indiscretions and persistent episodes of racism towards players. The draft was written many years ago, but we are just getting to see the final script now, and it is far from pretty.
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